Medical diagnosis and treatment is often aided by, or in some cases based upon, visual observation of one or more portions of a patient's anatomy. Most commonly, this visual observation is performed through direct physical observation of what is visible to the clinician with the unaided eye. In surgical scenarios, this may include visual observation of internal organs.
Various instruments have been configured with optics or electronic imaging cameras to allow visual observation of portions of the patient's anatomy that may otherwise be difficult to see. By way of example, bronchoscopes, endoscopes, and the like have all allowed clinicians to visually observe portions of the anatomy that are otherwise hidden.
Techniques for medical imaging have also greatly extended the ability of clinicians to visually observe portions of a patient's anatomy. Beginning with techniques such as x-ray radiography, and later including techniques such as fluoroscopy, computerized axial tomography (CAT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), the ability to view portions of a patient's anatomy has never been greater. However, in many cases, the images generated by medical imaging systems are two-dimensional and thus require a great degree of skill in order to interpret properly. Some imaging systems provide images that include three-dimensional information, but are rendered on two-dimensional displays causing much of the value of the three-dimensional information to be lost.